Teacher Agency in Creating a Translingual Space in Nepal’s Multilingual English-Medium Schools

• Published in: RELC journal Vol. 53; no. 2; pp. 431 - 451
• Main Authors: Phyak, Prem, Sah, Pramod K, Ghimire, Nani Babu, Lama, Anju
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London, England SAGE Publications 01.08.2022; SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
• Subjects: Class Activities; Classroom Communication; Code Switching (Language); Educational activities; Educational Needs; Educational Policy; English (Second Language); English for academic purposes; Epistemology; Ethnography; Foreign Countries; Human agency; Ideology; Indigenous Populations; Indo European Languages; Language Attitudes; Language identification; Language ideologies; Language of Instruction; Language Usage; Learning; Learning Activities; Learning Processes; Linguistic identity; Monolingualism; Multilingualism; Native Language; Professional Autonomy; Public Schools; Schools; Second Language Instruction; Second Language Learning; Sino Tibetan Languages; Student Participation; Students; Teacher Attitudes; Teachers; Transformative Learning; Nepal; language ideology; English as a medium of instruction; agency; Translanguaging space; multilingualism
• DOI: 10.1177/00336882221113950
• ISSN: 0033-6882

This paper focuses on teacher agency in creating a ‘translanguaging space’ in Nepal’s multilingual public schools. Drawing on the ethnographic data from two public schools, we discuss how teachers can resist a monolingual ideology of an English as a medium of instruction policy to ensure students’ participation in classroom activities. The findings of the study reveal that teachers create a translanguaging space to counter the official English-only monolingual ideology and draw on students’ home languages to address their learning needs and their own pedagogic challenges. By using students’ home languages in teaching both the content and English language subjects, the teachers in this study demonstrate a transformative agency to create a multilingual classroom space where students feel safe to use their existing language abilities and epistemologies in learning process. The findings of the study imply that policymakers need to build on teachers’ multilingual agency and their critical ideological awareness to develop pedagogical approaches that recognize students’ diverse linguistic identities and learning needs.